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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. season — of the year
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. march — the month
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. hand — help
  7. bound — tied together
  8. squash — to crush
  9. stock — shares
  10. squash — the sport
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — to come from
  14. foot — a measure
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. season — in sport
  17. march — the month
  18. bound — certain
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bound — obliged
  22. march — music
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. stock — goods

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com